Lecture: “Ancient Synagogues in the Land of Israel” by Jodi Magness on April 28th

On Tuesday April 28th at 7:30pm in the Pyle Center (702 Langdon Street), Professor Jodi Magness of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill will be discussing the more than 100 ancient synagogue buildings that have been discovered in ancient Palestine. In this slide-illustrated lecture, Professor Magness surveys these buildings, focusing especially on the surprising pagan motifs that decorate some of them, and considering such questions as where and when the institution of the synagogue originated. The lecture brings together archaeology, art history, and religious studies in a study of a central institution of Judaism with important ramifications for early Christianity.

The event is free and open to the public. Sponsored by the University Lectures Committee and the Department of Hebrew & Semitic Studies; co-sponsored by the Lubar Institute for the Study of the Abrahamic Religions, the Religious Studies Program, and the Mosse/Weinstein Center for Jewish Studies.